After the Happily Ever After
by Claeri
Summary: Harry and Ginny's daughter begins Hogwarts shortly after tradgedy has struck the family. Ginny must face empty house and grief on her own, while Alexia faces the children of her fathers classmates.
1. Return to Hogwarts

**Disclaimer: Unless JK Rowling is going to give me the rights to Harry Potter for Christmas, I don't own any of her characters or places or ideas.**

**A/N:This is a new version of a story I tried to write a while ago, and now have started up (hopefully better). Enjoy. **

**Chapter One: Return to Hogwarts**

Alexia Potter was as normal as most eleven-year-olds go. She had sleek, copper-colored hair that fell to the middle of her back, and startlingly green eyes. She was petite, and slightly shy, and had a tendency to twist her hair around her fingers when she got nervous.

Currently, Alexia was twisting her hair, frantically and nervously. She sat upon a large trunk, in the front hall of her large house, and gazing intently at a grand father clock, as it ticked closer to10 o'clock. As the clock began to strike, she jumped off the trunk, letting her hair fall back.

"Logan! LO-gan!" she called running through the massive dining room into the large living room, "Where ARE you? Logan!" Alexia heard a clatter behind her, and ran back toward the front hall, arriving in time to see her older brother heaving a trunk down the marble staircase.

"LOGAN!" She screamed, running forward, "You're going to chip the marble, for goodness sakes, you idiot!" Logan stopped, and glared at her. He was a handsome boy, tall, and thin, with a mop of black hair, and hazel eyes. At thirteen, he felt much the superior to Alexia and very knowledgeable in the ways of the world.

"Lexi. How else am I supposed to get my trunk down stairs?"

"Well I don't know," blustered Alexia, "You could have called Mopsy, or something! Just not by dragging it down the stairs." Logan rolled his eyes, and tugged the trunk the rest of the way down the stairs.

"Mopsy is so old that she can barely fold a pair of socks, much less carry my trunk down three flights of stairs," He heaved a huge fake sigh, and looked at Alexia, "I suppose you wouldn't help me carry it the rest of the way, would you? Because you wouldn't want me to scratch the floor, huh?" Alexia glared at her brother, but helped him carry his trunk, and set it down next to her hers.

Suddenly, a small, wrinkled creature with large ears, a round, squashed nose, and a mop of thin gray hair came shuffling into the room. When she reached Alexia and Logan she curtsied, and squeaked, "Mistress has told Mopsy to come fetch the young miss and master. You are to come with Mopsy," Mopsy turned, and shuffled off, trailed by Alexia and Logan.

They climbed the large pale marble staircase up two flights, before turning off onto a deep blue carpeted hall.

"Mopsy must go. Mistress is in Mistress's bedroom," squeaked Mopsy, before shuffling off.

Alexia led the way down the long hall.

"Mum? What is it?" she called, as she turned into one of the most stunning rooms in the large house.

The floor was a pale green carpet, seemingly three inches deep. The walls were painted cream, with gold trimmings. All the furniture was pale creamy wood, edged with gold and draped with pale green.

"Oh! Lexi, Logi. Perfect. We have to leave, or you'll miss the train. Come on, kids." The petite, fiery-haired woman began walking out of the room, "Oh, and Mopsy, don't let anyone in while I'm gone," she called, as the three passed the crippled house elf in the hall,

"Yes, Mistress," she said, standing aside for them.

"We're going to go to the station via my parents' house," said their mother to the two children as they went downstairs to fetch their trunks, "So get your trunks, and we'll use the floo powder." She squeezed Alexia's hand, "You nervous?" Alexia, who had been twisting her hair around her finger, nodded.

"A bit."

She grabbed her trunk, and they walked over to the fireplace. The flames turned emerald green, and Logan stepped into them, shouting, "The Burrow!" Their mother fallowed him. Alexia stood in the silent room, and looked 'round her house one more time, before stepping into the flames and shouting, "The Burrow!"

She spun, faster and faster, and then suddenly, she stopped. The awkwardness of holding her trunk caught her off balance, and she began to fall, before strong hands caught her, and set her on her feet.

"Oh, Alexia!" Molly Weasley, her red hair dulled with gray, hugged her granddaughter hard, "You've grown so much! It's so good to see you! And on your first day of Hogwarts, too. Oh, Darling!" Alexia blushed, her whole face turning red, and squirmed out of her grandmother's arms.

"We've got to go, Mum," said her mother, pecking Mrs. Weasley on the cheek, "But it's good to see you,"

"Yes, Ginny Dear," Mrs. Weasley, "Have a good term, you two!"

Alexia was herded out the door with Logan by their mother. A turquoise Ford Anglia sat in the yard, surrounded by chickens, scratching at the ground.

"C'mon, kids," Ginny slid around into the driver's seat, then checked to see that her children were buckled in, "I'll come back to return the car around noon, OK Mum?" Mrs. Weasley smiled,

"Of course, dear. Stay for lunch. Remus is dropping in, and you haven't seen him in a while."

"Sure Mum." The Ford Anglia flickered, and then disappeared. The engine roared, then faded to a dull hum. Next to her, Alexia heard Logan shout, "Wicked!"

She felt odd, detached. She could feel the car around her, but couldn't see it, and wasn't sure that she liked this way of travel.

Thirty minutes later, the car touched down outside of Kings Cross Station. Ginny helped Logan and Alexia put their trunks on two trolleys, and wheel them into the station.

"Here, Logan, you go first," said Ginny, and her son leaned casually against the barrier between platform 9 and platform 10. Alexia blinked, and he was gone.

"Here Lexi," Her mother pulled her towards the barrier. She saw the solidness of it, and then suddenly it wasn't there. Before her was a huge scarlet steam engine, belching steam. Logan had already disappeared with some friends. Alexia gazed around her, feeling smaller than ever.

"Have a good term, Darling. Send me lots of letters." Alexia hugged her mother, and walked towards the train. She lifted her trunk off the trolley, and tried to push it up the steps.

"Hey," someone said, "Need any help?" Alexia looked up to see a tall, dark haired boy grabbing the other end of her trunk.

"Yes please!" she panted, and together they shoved the trunk onto the train.

"I'm Chase," said the boy, "Chase Hutchinson. Are you new?"

"Yeah," replied Alexia, "I'm Alexia Potter. Thanks for helping," but the boy wasn't listening.

"Alexia _Potter_? You mean, your dad was…" She sighed.

"Yeah. My dad was the Boy-Who-Lived, the Chosen One. Yep, he's Harry Potter."

A memory of a tall, black haired man, kissing her mother good bye. And then a letter arriving two months later that made her mother shut herself in her room, where Alexia could hear sobbing. A funeral on a perfect day, sun shining hotly on the millions of witches and wizards dressed in black robes, hats and veils, come to mourn their hero, fallen at last.

"Wow," breathed Chase, "That is so bloody awesome. So what was it like? To have him as a dad, I mean?" Alexia's eyes slowly began to fill with tears. She lowered her head so that Chase wouldn't see.

She could see her mother, her fiery hair wrapped in a black scarf, hands pressed on the gold plaque with the simple words 'In the Memory of Harry Potter, Loving Husband and Father,' that was set into the white marble tome.

"I'd rather not talk about it," She said. Chase looked instantly abashed.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you feel bad, or anything. Oh, oh, don't cry! Please? I'm sorry!" Tears began to slowly course down her cheeks, but she shook her head, and tried to wipe them away.

"It's just," sniffed Alexia, "He d-died so recently. I m-mean, he was almost never home anyways, but even th-then, I knew that he _c-could_ come home, if he had time. Now, even if he r-really wants to, no matter what, he c-can't come home…" Alexia found that she was sobbing full out now. "I'm sorry," she said, "I'm acting silly. I'm sorry."

She could see the black mass of witches and wizards forming a long scraggly line to kiss the tome of her father. She remembered clinging to her mother's skirt, while sobbing people held her mother's hand and spoke whispered condolences.

Chase shook his head, and handed her a handkerchief. "No, no, I know how you feel. Well, not exactly, but I know what it's like to lose someone. My mom died of Cancer when I was six. It's a muggle disease."

Suddenly a loud blast from the train's horn, made Alexia dash to the window.

"Bye Mum!" She called out the window, "Bye!" Her mother waved back, a smile on her face, until the train rounded a corner, and the station disappeared.

**A/N: so, what did you think? The next chappie will (I think) be more interesting.**


	2. The SunStone Ring

**Disclaimer: Dear Santa, I have been good this year. What I want most in the world is the rights to Harry Potter, which I unfortunately don't own.**

**A/N: This chappie (in my opinion) is more interesting. Enjoy! **

**Chapter Two: The Sun-Stone Ring**

Ginny Weasley watched the red Hogwarts Express pick-up speed, and saw her daughter wave good-bye.

Then the train was out of sight. The platform was full of chatting parents. Ginny saw many people looking curiously at her, and decided it was time to leave. She stepped, and turned, disappearing.

The feeling of being sucked through a tight rubber tube, and then air burst into her lungs, and she was staring at her house.

Actually, one couldn't really call it a house. It was a giant mansion. It sprawled lazily on a thirty acre lot surrounded by forest. Rows of windows glinted in the sun. Perfectly manicured lawns glowed emerald. Flowers everywhere seemed to burst with color.

Ginny ignored the extravagant splendor of her home, and walked inside to the immense foyer. Her high heeled shoes clicked on the marble floor, and her black slacks whispered together. A sigh escaped her lips. It was just her alone in this large, silent, empty house full of grandeur.

Heels clicked up the stair case, a white hand rested softly on the polished mahogany banister. Up two flights, then turn into the blue carpeted hall. Past rows of pictures, Lexi on a broom for the first time, Logi with Ginny… and Harry. So many pictures of Harry. The ones of him when he was younger, and actually smiled. Their engagement. Their wedding. Their honeymoon.

Tears pricked Ginny's eyes, and she quickly turned away from the moving photos, and walked into her room.

Her heels sunk into the green carpet, throwing her off balance, and she sat heavily in a chair.

The empty house seemed to hold its breath around her.

_Oh Harry. I'm all alone now. And I'm so cold._

She pulled off her heels, and grabbed a blanket from the bed. How many times had she woken up with him next to her?

_So cold._

It had only been two months. The letter stayed on her bedside table. The creases were beginning to fall apart from being handled and read so much.

_Dear Ginny,_

_I wish I wasn't the one writing you this letter, but there is no one else who can. It's happened, Gin. He died. But he died the way he would have wanted to go. Yes, I know, Harry didn't want to go at all. Let me tell you though, he died with your name on his lips. The evil just consumed him too much. You knew it was going to happen Gin. It was slowly killing him from the inside. There was nothing I could have done. I was the only one there. _

_I'll see you soon. I'm so sorry Gin. He was a hero. He was also a wonderful man, and we will all miss him through out eternity._

_Love,_

_Hermione_

Huddled on the floor, wrapped in a blanket, Ginny began to cry. He was never coming back. She would never see those green eyes gaze into hers, never feel his soft lips kiss hers, never trace his scar, stroke his hair…

_Why? Oh Harry, why? You killed Voldemort long ago, you didn't have to go. Oh… Harry…_

She sat on the floor crying, letting memory after memory sweep over her… his proposal…

"_You look perfect tonight, Gin."_

"_Oh, Harry, you always say that."_

"_It's always true."_

_He swept her into his arms, where she melted as he kissed her deeply, passionately. She traced his lighting bolt scar._

"_Come on, Precious. We have an appointment to make." He pulled her to him, stepped, put his lips to hers, and turned, kissing her as they apparated._

_The brightness of the sunset blazed Ginny's eyes._

"_Where are we?" she asked._

"_The South of France," Harry answered, "Come on." _

_She laughed, and he pulled her to a blanket on the beach. They sat down, and he fed her fruit._

_The sun set._

"_Ginny."_

"_Yes, Harry?"_

"_I have a question."_

"_What is it?"_

"_I have two questions."_

"_Yes?"_

"_Do you love me, Ginny?"_

"_Of course. I love you more than anything in the world. I love you more than night or day. I love you more than life."_

"_Really?"_

"_Was that the second question?"_

"_Ginny."_

"_Yes, really."_

"_Ginny."_

"_Yes?"_

"_Ginny."_

"_What, Harry?"_

"_Ginny. Will you marry me?"_

"_What?"_

_He kissed her. When they broke apart, he pulled out his wand. He murmured a spell, and what look like a ray of the sun came shooting towards them. Harry caught it. A twitch of his wand and it compacted into a small, glowing stone. A tap, and it was suddenly set into a gold ring._

"_Ginny. I'm asking you to be my wife."_

_He held up the ring. She stared at him._

"_Oh Harry."_

"_Is that a yes?"_

_She kissed him. Some where in the kiss he slipped the sun stone ring onto her finger…_

Tears coursed down her cheeks… three months later they had married. Nine months later Logan was born, and two years after that, Alexia came into the world.

And now she was all alone in a big empty house that whispered his name every time she took a step. And he was never coming back.

**A/N: OK, now that's out of my system, I get to go Christmas Shopping! Yay!**


	3. A Blond Haired Boy and An Argument

**Disclaimer: I went Christmas shopping today... unluckily, none of the stores I went to carried the rights to Harry Potter, so I still don't own them.**

**A/N: Lalala! I love the holidays! I'm churning out the chappies now because I have NO SCHOOL which makes me insanely happy. Plus, I like this story. **

**Chapter Three: A Blond Haired Boy and An Argument**

"Hey," said Chase, "Do you want to come and meet my friends?" Alexia smiled at him.

"Sure."

The two dragged Alexia's trunk into a nearby compartment. In it, there were two boys and two girls.

"Hi everyone," said Chase, "This is Alexia. She's a first year." Alexia smiled at everyone, and was relieved that Chase hadn't mentioned her surname. She went and sat down next to a girl with long, wavy blond hair, a round face, and slightly vacant eyes.

"I'm Maya Longbottom," said the girl, "Nice to meet you."

"Maya _Longbottom_? Is your mum _the_ Luna Lovegood Longbottom, editor of the Quibbler, and famous Auror?"

Maya smiled. "Yep, that's my Mum." She said proudly, "And my dad's Neville Longbottom, he's head healer at Longbottom's Hospital of Auror Injury." Alexia nodded. She could remember her mum talking about Neville and Luna Longbottom.

"Our parents went to school together," said Alexia without thinking.

"Who are your parents?" asked the other girl in the compartment. She had long black hair, and a pale, though very pretty face.

Alexia swallowed, and glanced at Chase. "Er… They're Ginny and Harry Potter."

A collective gasp went around the compartment. Maya was staring at her, she heard a boy say, "Blimey!" and the black haired girl say, "Well, I'll be!"

Chase broke the awkwardness by suddenly saying, "Oh yeah, my Mum says that she went to some ball with your uncle Ron!" Alexia, eternally grateful, turned to Chase.

"Who's your mum?" she asked.

"Padma Hutchinson," replied Chase, "Padma Patil before she married my dad."

"Hey!" cried Alexia, "Her sister is my auntie! Aunt Parvati! She's married to my uncle Ron!"

The compartment door slid open, and a very pretty girl stepped in. She had long dark hair, a very pretty face, thick eyebrows and slightly hooked nose, though it added to her stunning appearance. Alexia recognized her, jumped up and cried,

"Victoria! I missed you!" she hugged the girl, and Victoria hugged her back.

"Is this your first day, Alexia?"

"Yeah." Alexia replied, "How are you?"

"I'm good. I didn't know you were starting this year." Victoria twitched the small glasses on her nose.

"Yeah," replied Alexia, not sure what else to say. Fifteen-year-old Victoria, the daughter of her father and uncle's best friend, had always put her at a loss for words. Her pure untouched beauty, her incredible intelligence, her aura of perfect ness made Alexia feel small and insignificant.

"Well, I'll see you around, Alexia. I have to go patrol the corridors." With a final wave, Victoria disappeared from the compartment in a cloud of shining brown hair.

Alexia sat back down next to Maya. She noticed the black haired girl staring at her, with a small scowl on her face. She was glad when the sandy-haired boy sitting next to Chase spoke.

"I don't think we all introduced ourselves properly. I'm Johnny Finnigan. This is Fynn Thomas," Johnny indicated the dark boy next to him, "And that is Sophronia Calista Chang Malfoy."

The black haired, pale skinned girl nodded briefly. Fynn smiled.

Maya pulled out a copy of _The Quibbler_, and began to read it. The other girl, Sophronia Malfoy continued to watch Alexia, until the compartment door slid open.

A boy stood in the door way. He was of average height, and had sleek blond hair and silver eyes. As Alexia looked at him, she felt she had seen him before, though she knew she had not.

"Sophronia," drawled the boy, "What in the name of Merlin are you doing?" Sophronia glared at the boy.

"I'm sitting, Cymbeline. It's what most people do on trains. Now, go play with your friends, and don't bother me."

It was obvious to Alexia that the boy, Cymbeline, was Sophronia's brother, and it was also obvious that Sophronia didn't much like her little brother.

"You know what Father said. You shouldn't be with people like--" Sophronia cut him off.

"Don't say another word, Cymbeline Darius Draco Malfoy!" Sophronia got up and strode out of the train compartment, pulling Cymbeline with her. She slammed the door, but it bounced back, and Alexia, who was closest, heard every word of their argument.

"Go away, Cymbeline! Stop being rude to my friends."

"Friends! Sophronia, those people are blood traitors and mudbloods. Do you know what Father would say if he saw you with--" Again, Sophronia cut off Cymbeline.

"Yes. I do. Stop bossing me around. I'm older than you, remember? And frankly, I don't care what Father would say if he knew that my friends weren't all purebloods."

"Well then, I'll just write to him, to tell him… since you obviously don't care…" Cymbeline trailed off, and Sophronia sucked in her breath.

"You wouldn't dare!"

"Watch me!"

"Cymbeline… I'm warning you…" Sophronia pulled out her wand, and Alexia drew back from the door.

Cymbeline turned his back on Sophronia, and started walking down the corridor.

"Cymbeline!" Sophronia called, "Cymbeline! Come back!" Cymbeline stopped walking, "OK. Alright. Fine. Just don't write to Father."

Cymbeline turned, and Alexia could just see, through the window in the compartment, his pale face covered in a satisfied smirk.

"Good." She heard him say, "Good. Leave your blood traitor pals, and I won't write to Father."

"Fine," said Sophronia. Alexia saw her coming, and sat back in her seat. Sophronia marched into the compartment, heaved her trunk from the luggage rack, and pulled it out into the corridor.

"Sorry guys," she said, before turning her back on them and fallowing Cymbeline down the train.

"What was that all about?" asked Chase.

"I have no idea," answered Alexia.

**A/N: Happy Hannukah (sorry if I murdured the spelling) and happy one week until Christmas and eight days til Kwanza.**

**See that little drop down menu? It says Submit Review. See the little purple button next to it? It says Go. I want you to (please) Go Submit a Review. Gracias!**


	4. Hermione's Visit

**Disclaimer: If I owned the rights to Harry Potter there would probably be lots of confusing stuff in small print after this. There isn't.**

**A/N: Laura, I'm updating just for you. **

**Chapter Four: Hermione's visit**

"Ginny?"

Ginny heard the familiar voice calling her name, and heard Hermione walking up the stairs. They had always agreed to just enter the others house… both houses were so large that it was a pain to answer the doorbell.

Ginny jumped up, and scurried into the bathroom, slipping a little on the green, cream and gold tiles in her stocking feet. She looked, horrified, into the mirror. Her eyes were puffy, her face was blotchy, there was a large pink patch on her cheek from where it had been pressed into her knee, and her unruly hair was everywhere.

"_Como conscribo_," she muttered, and instantly the makeover charm worked its wonders. The puffiness and blotchiness vanished, her hair immediately settled into a knot at the nape of her neck, her make-up re-applied itself…

She was standing in the doorway of her room when Hermione entered the hall. She took one look at Ginny, at the fresh appearance and cheery smile, and shook her head.

"Oh Gin," she whispered. She walked forward, and pulled Ginny into her arms, as they both began to cry. Hermione led Ginny to the couch, and they collapsed on it.

"Oh Mya…" sobbed Ginny.

Hermione ignored her least favorite nickname, and stroked Ginny's fiery hair, letting her own tears fall into it.

The two sat like that for sometime, crying steadily.

Finally, Ginny sat up straight. They both smiled sadly at each other.

"Would you like some tea?" asked Ginny quietly.

"I'd love it," answered Hermione, "Just one thing…"

They both looked at each other and murmured, "_Como conscribo_," before getting off the couch and walking downstairs.

They were both settled in the kitchen with mugs of dark amber tea, and Ginny was beginning to feel more relaxed, when the scene reminded her of the past. It had been a gloomy day, rain pounding the windows, when…

"_Ginny?" Hermione had called, entering the large house. Alexia had come walking out of the living room._

"_Mum's in her room, Hermione," she had said, "She got this letter a couple hours ago, and she's locked herself in there… can you get her out? I heard her crying. What's happened? Is it Dad?"_

_Hermione had frozen, not wanting to be the one to tell Alexia. She hadn't answered, just hurried up the marble staircase, and knocked on Ginny's door._

"_Go away, Lex! Go play with Logan!"_

_Hermione had pushed the door open…_

"_Oh, Gin..." Ginny had turned to Hermione, and fell to a fresh wave of sobbing._

_The two women had held each other and cried. Cried and cried, letting the grief pour out of them in salty tears._

_Finally, Ginny had offered Hermione some tea, and they had gone down to the kitchen, Ginny still clutching the letter._

_There, with mugs of tea in front of them, Hermione had begun to talk._

"_I was with him, Gin. We were investigating that forest, the one we suspected might have been Voldemort's hiding place during the war. We got there, and the evil around the place was so intense that every time you breathed in, you felt like you're stomach was eating itself away. I think I must have fainted, from the pure evilness of it, because I woke up that night, in the camp Harry had made, a good distance from the forest._

"_He was sitting by the fire, just staring. He was white—so white! It scared me. I told him we should leave; that place was so dangerous… but he refused. He said that all his life, Voldemort had been hanging over him, even when he was a kid, and never heard of him. He said by destroying Voldemort's headquarters, he would be ridding the world entirely of the man once called Tom Riddle, and in doing so, freeing himself._

"_I didn't think it was a good idea to go into the forest, but Harry insisted. We cast the _tutaminis_ charm over ourselves for more protection, but I still felt woozy and sick as we got closer. The evilness was so scary, Gin. I felt as though if I tried to breathe, I would breathe it in, and it would claw away at my insides. If I'd known that it really was, and if I'd known that Harry hadn't actually cast the _tutaminis_ charm on himself, but instead on me for extra protection, I wouldn't have let him lead me into the forest. _

"_We got to Voldemort's headquarters, and oh, Ginny. The evil in the air. I nearly fainted again. I can't begin to explain the awfulness of it. All around us, the trees whispered tales of death, and the wind grabbed our cloaks, as to pull us away into the trees. _

"_The headquarters were hidden very well, but Harry didn't take long in revealing them. One moment we were standing in front of an ordinary tree, the next this massive building… more like a castle stood in its place._

"_We went inside. Words couldn't describe how awful it was. I barely stood the evil, even with two _tutaminis_ charms on me… I can't begin to think how Harry managed it on his own._

"_I think we must have been near where Voldemort had stayed, or something, because Harry collapsed._

" "_Her…mione…tell…tell… Ginny..." he said, and then… he died. I couldn't do anything… I didn't even know what was happening. I sent his body back… and then apparated home… Oh Gin…_

"_He lived a life with great purpose…and he died doing what he knew he had to do…Oh, Ginny…"_

_The two women had broken down again, holding each other until the tea was long cold._

"Gin, I saw you leaving the station, and you looked unhappy. You've got to get some purpose back in your life. Not having Lexi 'round will make you feel more and more useless. You need to get out and do something."

Ginny sighed sadly.

"I know. But everything I do, everywhere I go… I see him there… I need to get out of this house."

"Come stay with me, Ginny. Viktor's on another tour, and I have my house all alone, except of course, for Sunshine."

Sunshine was Hermione's youngest. At six, she was already beautiful, but no one knew where she got her beauty. She had blond hair (her namesake) and nice skin, and was already showing signs of Hermione's wisdom.

Ginny nodded. "Yes. That's a good idea."

Hermione smiled, "Great. And we can do all sorts of fun things… take Sunshine shopping, have parties, make treacle tart and surprise Ron…"

Ginny laughed weakly, and they hurried upstairs to pack.

* * *

**A/N: OK, it is late, so I need to rot my brains with computer games.**


	5. Down Memory Lane

**Disclaimer: Lalalala. Do you really think I would be typing this up on a fan fiction website, if I owned the rights to Harry Potter?**

**A/N: I've just had so many reviewers bombarding me with requests for more chapters that I had to post again today (notice the sarcasm). I still love you all, though! **

**Chapter Five:**

Alexia sat in a corner of the compartment, staring out the window at the rugged country side. The other people in the compartment, Chase, Maya, Fynn and Johnny were busy with other things. Fynn and Johnny were playing Exploding Snap Deluxe. Chase and Maya were discussing the recent Quidditch World Cup. In the end it had been Italy against Mongolia, and Italy had won, though narrowly. Alexia hadn't seen it. She had begged to go, but it had been very shortly after her dad had died, and her mother refused to take her. It sounded like a brilliant match.

Alexia sighed as the train passed through a foggy swamp. She shivered. The fog reminded her of those awful creatures, dementors, the ones that sucked the sole out of people.

A swirl of mist pressed against the window, and Alexia drew back. She didn't want to think about Melody, but she couldn't help it. Her darling baby sister. Melody had been born when Alexia was just four. She had been beautiful. Brownish-red hair and green eyes, she already looked like her mother. But then there had been that picnic… Logan had been six, Alexia was five, and it was Melody's first birthday…and it had been all Alexia's fault.

"_Come on Lexi. Don't dawdle."_

_Alexia had grasped her mother's free hand as they walked through the sunny wood. She could see her father and Logan up ahead, picking out a spot to spread the picnic blanket._

_They had been eating and talking and playing for over an hour, when Logan and their father had gone off to the stream to sail Logan's toy boat._

"_Stay right here Lexi, and mind Melody for just a minute, alright?" said her mother. She had gone off into the trees after Logan and Harry._

_But Alexia was bored. She didn't want to sit alone on a hot blanket with a sleeping baby. She got up and went in the opposite direction, into the woods. She was walking alone, humming, when it got cold. Alexia began to cry in fear. She saw a tall, hooded figure, and screamed. She tried to run back to the clearing, but tripped. She crawled as fast as she could, before getting to her feet and running on her short legs. The thing chased her, gliding. But when Alexia got back to the clearing, no one was there. They were all still by the stream._

"_No! No!" Alexia screamed as the thing came closer and closer. But she felt weak. She fell to the ground again, shivering and crying. Melody had woken up and began to cry too. The thing passed so close to Alexia that she could feel it. And the smell. She could hardly breathe. There was a swirling fog all around. The thing was approaching Melody, and then Alexia fainted_.

Melody's body had died shortly after that day. They usually do, the people who have been kissed by dementors. Alexia hadn't really understood what had happened until she was older. By the time she was seven, she knew that it was her fault that Melody had died, and couldn't forgive herself.

"Er… Alexia? I asked you something."

"What?" Alexia look round into the compartment. Everyone was looking at her. She blushed.

"Do you want to come with me while the boys change into their robes?" repeated Maya.

Alexia stood up quickly, blushing deeper, "Right, OK."

The two girls left the compartment, and the boys let the blinds down. Maya giggled.

"Do you want to come meet my sisters?" she asked Alexia, after an awkward pause.

"Sure," Alexia answered, and they walked down the swaying train, "So, how come you're not sitting with your sisters?"

"Well," replied Maya, "They're always together. There's three, and they're triplets, and they're older then me_ and_ they all have boyfriends. When ever I'm with them, I'm left out, you know? So I decided, when I came to Hogwarts, instead of hanging around my sisters all the time, I'd go out and meet new people and stuff. Expand my horizons, la la la."

They'd arrived outside a compartment about halfway down the train. Maya didn't bother to knock. She slid back the compartment door and marched in, pulling Alexia with her.

Inside the compartment were three girls and three boys. Alexia could right away tell they were triplets, but they looked nothing like Maya. Maya was rather plain, but these three were stunning. They had dark chestnut hair down to their waists. They had intent, blue blue eyes. Their skin was smooth and creamy, and each had a single beauty mark, one on her chin, one above her eyebrow, and the last near her nose. Alexia stared.

"Alexia," said Maya, "I'd like you to meet my sisters. Yekaterina, Yelizaveta and Nicola. Katty, Lizzy and Nikky, this is my new friend Alexia."

The girls all smiled very prettily, and said in unison, "Hello, Alexia."

And then one of them (was it Yekaterina?) said, "This is Gard."

And the next (Yelizaveta?) said, "This is Herb."

And the last (Nicola?) said, "and this is Monty."

Alexia smiled painfully, and said, "Nice to meet you."

"See ya," murmured Maya, and pulled her from the compartment. They began walking down the corridor, "See?" said Maya, "Yekaterina, Yelizaveta and Nicola. They're named after Russian Tzarinas. And they're blokes, Gardner, Herbert and Montgomery. What kind of names are those?"

Alexia laughed, and they continued down the corridor.

* * *

**A/N: Happy Hannukah, Happy seven days till Christmas and eight till Kwanza!**


End file.
